Field trip of the Department of Urban Studies, University of Malmö, 8th -10th of may 2010
Urban Passion organized a three day field trip for about 40 scholars and practitioners from Sweden and Denmark. It consisted of three guided tours with expert tour guides, two workshops with Berlin based practitioners and researchers (The Hub Berlin; Simmel Center for Metropolitan Studies at Humboldt University). The trip was initiated and coordinated by Frederick Björn, researcher and teacher at Malmö University, Department of Urban Studies.
Subject:
Is it possible to reach urban sustainability through social innovation by the means of social entrepreneurship!?
This question was the starting point of the excursion. Because social entrepreneurship in the classical sense does not play a big role in urban development in Berlin in our opinion, we didn´t try to look for projects, places and actors which would call themselves social entrepreneurs in the first place. We rather wanted to show the group an
contested urban area, Media Spree, to start with. The idea was to look at a wide spectrum of actors, both institutional and non institutional, in order to see their relevance in the framework of sustainable urban development and social innovation. The experiences and the expectancies where cross checked and broadened to other parts of Berlin in the workshops and additional field trips later on.
Social Entrepreneurship proved to be a little applied term in Berlin. The relevance in the Scandinavian context seems to be much higher and the involvement of institutional actors within button up urban development through small cultural and socially active actors (entrepreneurs) is much bigger. Yet the drive of button up actors in urban development in Berlin is still very strong, even though and maybe even because there is not really a comprehensive scheme for sustainable urban development integrating bottom up movements.
Program:
Day 1:
- 3 City walks through the media spree area.
- Workshop with Jürgen Breiter (The Hub Berlin, Wedding
Windows) about the concept of social
entrepreneurship in Berlin
Day 2:
- Site Visit of ExRotaPrint
- Workshop at Georg Simmel Center for Metropolitan Studies
(Humboldt University Berlin):
sustainable urban development through social
entrepreneurship?*
Day 3:
- Learning from Berlin? - Group meeting and final round up
of the field trip with Martin Schwegmann
Routes of the different groups. (Guides: Carsten Joost, Anja Steglich, Yves Mikelsons-Roloff ) 
Workshop at meeting space of KUNSTrePUBLIK, Jürgen Breiter (THE HUB BERLIN)
Workshop at Simmel Center for Metropolitan Studies.
Prof. Harald Mieg (welcoming the groups participants)
Workshop participants/function:
Prof. Harald Mieg, Spokesman of Simmel Center (introduction); Heike Oevermann, Member of Simmel Center (moderation); Martin Schwegmann, Member of Simmel Center (moderation)
Inputs:
Mathias Heyden, Assistant Professor Technical University Berlin: What are our real values? Community design and participatory architecture as tools for urban sustainability
Paola Alfaro d´Alencon and Daniela Konrad, Assistant Professors Technical University Berlin: Introduction of their Urban Research Camp; Design Laboratory
Magnus Johansson, Assistant Professor at Malmö University: Social innovation and sustainable urban development
Lise Bisballe, lecturer at Roskilde University and social entrepreneur: Introduction of the project socialventures@2200 in Copenhagen
Thomas Bisballe, analyst for the city of Copenhagen: Public actors and the facilitation of social entrepreneurship - How to interact with "the opposition
Levend Kalac, Architect and Master Student, Fachhochschule Frankfurt: Urban development challenges - the case of Norra Sorgenfri
Prof. Björn Bjerke,
Learning from Berlin? - Round up of the field trip at the Michelberger Hotel, Berlin
Johannesburg24 at Bar25
Skateboard Venue at RAW Temple
On site explanation of the block structure of Berlin by Yves Mikelsons Roloff
Entrance to Prinzessinnengärten
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Reflections on the study trip from Karl Palmås: The ”post-productive” is the productive
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